How Not to Lose Your Sh*t Before the Election
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This story is part of our Election Stress Survival Guide, your source for getting through the next few months with your sanity intact.
Focus On What You Can Control
Dave Holstein
Cowriter, Inside Out 2, now on digital, soon on Disney+
“WHEN THE WORLD gets big, I try to think small. It's a strategy I use in scene work—when a scene is trying to tackle a big idea, sometimes it helps to focus in on a detail: What's the character doing with their hands? Are they allergic to something in the room? Is her husband bringing up divorce but is she trying to pluck a gray hair?
Similarly, when there's something big in this world happening outside of my control—say, an election—I try to focus on what I can control. My anxiety goes away when I’m feeling productive. I can't sit still very well. Sometimes accomplishing small tasks is its own meditation. It doesn't have to be pruning a Bonsai tree. But there’s a Zen I like in spending a long time on little things: making dinner, patching the stucco on my house, walking my dog an extra loop around the block. The planet is huge with many planet-sized problems. But people are planets, too, in a way. And for me, sometimes it helps to be reminded that while I can’t heal the ozone layer, I can definitely organize my tool shed.”
De-opinion-ize
Kier Gaines
Therapist in Washington, D.C.
“I FIND MYSELF walking a slim line between “keep me as up-to-date as possible” and “take me out of the group chat.” I try to remember that my brain is not an instrument designed to chug the complaints, concerns, and opinions of the more than 5 billion people with access to social media worldwide. I keep it light with the number of political networks and podcasts. I used to keep ten in the rotation; now I’ve dropped it to three. I mostly listen to international news or pods that don’t lean in any specific political direction. Don’t tell me what to think; just give me factual information.”
Log off and Chill
Troy Iwata
The Daily Show correspondent
“YOU ARE ALLOWED to not watch everything; you are allowed to not read everything. People feel a lot of guilt for not always knowing what's going on in the news. We think that if you don’t know, therefore you don’t care, which is not true. There is no shame in logging off and taking time to have fun and be happy, even with the world the way it is. Sometimes I just need to get an iced coffee, go for a walk somewhere I can see trees and water, and listen to some Audra McDonald singing Sondheim. Watch Patti LuPone read that and go insane. Patti LuPone reads Men’s Health, right?"
Stay IRL
V Spehar
Founder, Under the Desk News, short-form recaps of the day’s events
“KEEPING ONE FOOT in the real world and prioritizing real-life events and friendships is key to being successful and stable as an online creator. Like any job, you need to be able to “clock out” and recognize that not everything needs to be for content. Keep something for yourself! For me, clocking out to catch a Buffalo Bills game with #billsmafia or to run around the yard with my two-year-old niece catching bubbles allows me the space to feel human and remember what’s important. Family, fresh air—and Josh Allen. Go Bills!”
Embrace the Chaos
Steve Kornacki
NBC News and MSNBC national political correspondent, “big board” election commentator
“FOR ME, AN election season is busy, intense, and even frantic, and while that does entail some stress, it really just invigorates me. Looking at polling trends, learning the political geography of different states and regions, and gaming out different possibili- ties just get my mind going. All summer and fall, the anticipation builds, and there’s noth- ing like the moment those first few counties spit out their results and all of the questions I’ve accumulated finally, one by one, are answered. Who wouldn’t be excited?”
Shock Your System
Trey Yingst
Chief foreign correspondent, Fox News, covering the Israel–Hamas war.
“AS AN INDIVIDUAL, I don't have the power to decide the outcome of an election or whether a war will start somewhere in the world. But do have the power to set daily healthy habits. I’ve found that cold exposure is a great tool for calming the mind. I get into a cold shower or ice bath. And while that might sound counterproductive, around the one-minute mark I start to feel calm. It’s a reminder that you have control of your mind and can train it like you train a muscle.”
Give Up Control
Cliff Albright
Co-founder and executive director of Black Voters Matter
THE SERENITY PRAYER helps for me: Grant to us the serenity of mind to accept that which cannot be changed, courage to change that which can be changed, and wisdom to know the one from the other. In my work, it’s easy to believe that my organization and I have to change the world. Being able to focus on the things that we can actually impact in a sustainable way is critical.
Get Some Perspective
Josh Johnson
The Daily Show correspondent
“I’M READING A great book called Outrageous, by Kliph Nesteroff, about the history of comedy and cancel culture. As far back as the 1800s, people were quoted about how comedians just can’t say anything anymore. The lesson is that a cultural flash point may feel pressing because we’re living through it now, but that doesn’t mean we haven’t before. I think the same thing applies to politics. What helps keep me in check is remembering that some of the conversations we’re having now have been going on for over 200 years.”
Do Something
Dan Harris
Former ABC news anchor, NYT best-selling author, and host of the 10% Happier podcast.
THERE ARE THREE ways I keep it together during the election:
1. Don’t overdo it on news consumption. It’s important to stay informed, and I do so through podcasts, the New York Times, Substack, a little bit of social media. But you don’t want to burn yourself out on this stuff. If I’m starting to lose it, I try to walk away and do something else. Meditation is helpful for this, because it helps me figure out when I’m on tilt.
2. Talk about the stuff that is stressing me out with close friends. One of my favorite expressions is: never worry alone. This is backed by an abundance of scientific research. Stress kills, and stress is reduced through solid relationships.
3. The biggest challenge for me, and I don’t think I’m alone in this is: feeling powerless. I look at the various raging dumpster fires, from the campaign to the Middle East, and it makes me feel like the world’s out of my control. Which is largely true, but not entirely true. The antidote to powerlessness is taking action wherever you can. Volunteer. Get active locally. Be useful to friends, family members, and coworkers. You have more influence than you think.
Be Intentional
Gregory Scott Brown, M.D.
Psychiatrist, Men's Health advisor, and author of The Self-Healing Mind.
I’M A TOTAL news junkie. At my house, presidential debates are like the Super Bowl and watching the evening news is as palatable as a good episode of SportsCenter. But I’ve learned to do a couple of things to get my mind right heading into a presidential election.
I try to limit television commentary to about an hour a day (except during debates and on election night itself). Also, I find that reading the news can be less triggering than hearing the pundits yell at each other all night.
A few years ago, I began taking the day after the election off. I get that not everyone can do this, but I know I’ll be up late on election night and having a day to let what just happened—whether my candidate wins or loses—soak in, helps, too.
Most importantly, leading up to the election, I am intentional about trying to listen and hear other perspectives. Emotions are high and opinions can be divisive. But I always say that if we approach our differences with curiosity before judgment, we’ll learn something about each other, and perhaps even realize that we have more in common than we think.
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Get Josh Johnson's look (lead image): Lululemon Shorts. Get Troy Iwata's look (lead image): Lululemon Shorts
Prop Styling by Jared Lawton. Styling by Ted Stafford. Grooming by Melissa DeZarate.
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